MAGIC
by Melancholic Rose
Summary: Neverecho, a young NightWing who is only four years old (in dragon years), wakes up to find that all of Pyrrhia has mysteriously.. vanished. Died. She is the only living dragon, and must find out what caused Pyrrhia to vanish. Rated T for deep bleeding and gashes in future chapters.
1. Prologue

**M.A.G.I.C - Prologue**

 _This is the end_

 _Hold your breath and count to ten_

 _Feel the Earth move and then_

 _Hear my heart burst again_

 _For this is the end_

 _I've drowned and dreamt this moment_

 _So overdue, I owe them_

 _Swept away, I'm stolen_

 _Let the skyfall_

 _When it crumbles_

 _We will stand tall and face it all together_

~Skyfall by Adele

Neverecho felt something, after what seemed like forever. She felt herself lying on wooden floor, her blanket draping her.

She tried to force her eyes open, but she felt too tired - too exhausted - to do anything. Everything hurt, from her snout to her tailtip. It even hurt to breathe.

 _What's going on?_ was all Neverecho managed to think before realizing her head was throbbing, and so was the rest of her body. Her dizzying mind felt blank and empty, and her stomach felt nauseous.

Neverecho finally managed to lift her eyes open, before her exhaustion pulled them close again, and while her eyes were open for a fraction of a second, blurred green and dull yellow clouded her vision - empty amoebas of color.

 _What's going on? Why does everything hurt?_

Neverecho decided to take quick, shallow breaths. It hurt less to breathe that way. Her snout felt like it was bashed in with a mallet, then she was tranquilized with a blowdart infused with tree frog poison.

 _Maybe that's what happened to me. I was tranquilized._ Neverecho moved her claw in the slightest way and tried to relax her body's muscles. _But why would anyone want to tranquilize me? What did I do wrong to deserve that? And why don't I remember anything that happened yesterday?_

Neverecho finally found the strength to force herself to beat her wings slightly and get up. She almost tripped over her own talons as her vision was still bleak and blurry.

 _Maybe I should ask my parents why I woke up like this._

She rubbed her eyes to sharpen her vision, and she realized she was in her hut. Bamboo and wood surrounded her as smells of fresh water and jungle flowers flooded her.

She looked to the side and saw her plank-bed's pillow and blanket had, for some reason, rolled off the bed.

Neverecho widened her eyes in realization. _Oh. I woke up on the floor. I rolled out of my bed. But why? Why don't I remember anything, and why did this happen?_

The NightWing cleared her throat as she tried to call, weakly for her parents.

"Mom! Dad!" She coughed, her voice hoarse. She cleared her throat and called again. "Mom! Dad! Why did I wake up rolled out of my bed?"

No one answered.

 _Maybe they're still sleeping. I should wait till they wake up._

Neverecho sat down, and anxiously flicked her tail as she realized the pain was subsiding, and more energy built up in her veins.

She looked around. There was nothing much to do in her little hut. She liked taking small walks sometimes, or practising hunting outside of her hut. Or maybe she studied animals and was busy apologizing to NightWings she bumped into. Neverecho never really found much joy or interest in being in her hut when really, there was nothing special in there.

She decided to walk outside and breathe in some fresh air. Her wings beat again as she walked out of her little hut to see that it was early morning. The sun was rising, just peeking out of the horizon, but she softly gasped when she took in the scenery.

The beautiful sun was painting shades of red, orange, and pink onto the huts surrounding her, as the nearby river stream trickled as poisonous frogs around her croaked as they hopped from stone to stone, their brightly colored skin warning dragons to not eat them.

The sky was a soft pink as the clouds slowly drifted in the sky. It was a fine day, so it must be a good day.

 _I hope._ Neverecho gulped.

Her parents definitely weren't early birds, and woke up in the later hours of the morning. _It still gets frustrating having to wake up early to tell them something when they're fast asleep and couldn't care enough to hear it._

She walked over to the stream as the nearby frogs hopped off, and saw her blurred reflection in the river.

A small, black NightWing, with a midnight-blue underbelly and midnight-blue eyes. She remembered when she was very small, perhaps around a few months old, she thought her reflection in the river was another NightWing, and tripped into the river and almost drowned trying to hug her reflection.

Neverecho often came here to wash her face to help make her feel more awake. She cupped some water in her talons and splashed it onto her face. The cold, wet feeling was initially unpleasant, but she had grown to become attached to it.

She rubbed her dripping snout and decided to walk around the village, the huts containing sleeping dragons around her. She loved peace and quiet, especially since the NightWings were normally loud. The early morning was the perfect time to sit down and think about your thoughts for a while.

She basked in the serenity, where the only sound to be heard were the frogs croaking, the river trickling, and the crickets singing their night songs until the sun climbed higher into the sky.

Neverecho couldn't help but smile. She didn't smile often, but this scene took her breath away. A gentle wind picked up and slightly swayed her wings, as if prompting Neverecho to fly.

Several hours had passed. The sky was now blue, and the yellow sun was slowly climbing into the sky. This was the time when her parents would wake up, when the sound of rustling NightWings was to be heard.

But no one woke up. The huts were all each quiet, as the breeze lowered.

At first, Neverecho was grateful, but soon she became worried. Why wasn't anyone waking up?

It was like a ghost town, as if Neverecho was the only life here.

She slowly walked to her own hut, trying to calm herself down by taking some deep, much-needed breaths. _Don't panic, Neverecho. Maybe they're a little lazy. Maybe the NightWings are inside, doing their own things. Just don't jump to conclusions._

She slowly peeked in the hut. Her bedroom was exactly how she had left it. She creeped to the kitchen, and saw no one there. She held a breath as she walked inside her parents' bedroom.

They were in their beds, to Neverecho's relief. _So they are sleeping._ But her relief spiked to worry as she realized something. _But why aren't their chests heaving? And Dad's not snoring; he ALWAYS snores. Oh no, I hope they're not-_

Neverecho's thoughts drowned as fear took hold of them as she shook her parents. "Mom? Dad? Wake up." She continued rattling them. "Mom! Dad! Why won't you wake up?!" she whispered loudly. Tears were starting to form in her eyes.

"Mom. Dad. Just wake up. Let me know you're okay. You don't even have to wake up, actually. Just move a claw, or tail, or something. Please."

She placed a talon where their hearts were, and fear jolted in her chest bringing forth another set of salty tears when she _heard no pulse._

"Mom! Dad! Please wake up!" She continued shaking them. "Please! You can't be dead. Please tell me you're not dead! You can't leave me like this. Please!"

They didn't answer.

Neverecho burst into tears and cried into their blanket, and did so for about fifteen minutes till she had a headache. She got up and looked through the kitchen.

There was nothing really to eat, except for a banana, a bunch of grapes, and a rotting tamarin carcass. She sighed. Was this how it was going to be? Living on her own, without her parents?

 _Maybe this is some sort of punishment from them. How did they die? I don't think they were murdered, because I saw no cuts or blood. I can't shake the feeling that this is fishy._

Neverecho was about to continue thinking about this when the earth shook.

It literally swept her off her feet, and the bamboo around her was crumbling.

She got up as weight seemed to try to pull her down as she fled, determined to bolt. The hut was falling, and the earthquake rattled her bones and caused vibrations in her skull. Her heart seemed to jump all over the place.

Neverecho tripped, and fell onto the ground, only to be shook repeatedly as she barely managed to make out fallen bamboo, and two NightWing corpses.

It was unlike anything Neverecho had seen before. An earthquake that swept out her hut, and managed to make her feel a dizzying, yet... breathtaking feeling. As if a snake was strangling her while seducing her.

 _What just happened?! The hut- Everything-_

The shaking stopped, much to Neverecho's surprise. _Why is this all happening so fast? First I wake up not in my bed, then my parents mysteriously die, and the NightWings aren't awake yet either. Then, the hut gets demolished by an earthquake? Is this faith, or random?_

The NightWing looked ahead, and took a deep breath.

 _Well. I better go see how the NightWings are doing. They would probably be making a lot of noise by now. But why aren't they?_

She nervously gulped as she tried to walk forward, but it felt so unpleasant. Her claws kept shaking and trembling badly with every step she took, as if the shake was still happening, still continuing.

What she saw before her was something she could not believe.

All the huts were demolished; every last one. Each one with corpses spilling out, some with small dragonets.

Some were bleeding from such an earthquake; some, weren't. Every last one of the huts had fallen, all of the construction work the NightWings were up to had pretty much fallen, and every single dragon was dead.

It hurt Neverecho to see so many dragons die.

She shakily walked up to the corpse of a young dragon, much younger than her, looking to be only a year old.

She cried silently, tears trickling down her cheeks.

She felt more than sad and afraid at this point - she felt alone, and terrible and worthless and helpless and like everything was pointless and everything that had ever happened from the beginning to now had ended.

It was over, sooner than any dragon could've expected.

 _What happened to the RainWings? Why is everyone dead? Why- what- there are too many questions- what about Glory- the RainWings, Deathbringer, she was with egg-_

This was too much for Neverecho to process. Glory had died. Deathbringer had died. The NightWing-RainWing hybrid that was the heir to the throne, was born before she had even been hatched.

Everyone was dead.

And Neverecho was left to cope with this.

 _It's over. It's truly over. I'm the last one left. I'm the last dragon standing._

It took a while for this to sink in. That she was the last dragon of her species, her subspecies.

 _How... did this happen? Why don't I remember anything that happened yesterday, but I remember what happened before that?_

All of a sudden, a soft, quiet voice spoke. "Neverecho."

Startled, Neverecho looked around her. _What? Who is this?! I thought I was the only dragon left!_

The voice didn't respond for a few seconds, before she whispered, "Who I am is not important. All you need to know is that you should keep calm."

That response only frightened Neverecho even more. _How can you read my thoughts?_

"Calm down," soothed the voice. "There is no time to be afraid. Focus on your environment, take advantage of the peace around you. The trickling river."

The spikes on Neverecho's neck settled as she whispered, "Who are you?"

"Focus" _,_ said the voice. "Take a deep breath and relax. Don't focus on the stench of the bodies around you. Try to keep calm. Panicking and weeping will only make your predicament worse."

 _You didn't answer my question,_ thought Neverecho bristly. _Who are you? How can you read my thoughts? Why can't I see you?_

"You do not need to know anything about me. Naturally you wouldn't see me. I am in your mind, little NightWing. I am not really here. I am a figment of your imagination."

Neverecho fell silent.

"Please keep calm. I need you to be calm so we can continue."

Neverecho was about to argue when she all of a sudden realized that the trickling of the stream, the quiet of the forest, the peace...

...Was calming.  
"Good. Keep calm. Breathe easy."

Neverecho wanted to be afraid, to be angry at whoever this was, but her voice was a pure picture of serenity, like the morning song of the birds. She kept calm.

"Thank you. Now... By now, you must be wondering why you can't remember what happened yesterday. This is because you are suffering from slight amnesia. Nothing to worry about, though. Try to search back. Try to remember what was the last thing you did, before falling asleep. What were your emotions? Try to remember what happened."

The voice lulled Neverecho into trying to think. She couldn't remember anything, though. There were no emotions. But maybe... a hint of... fear? Confusion?

"The slight emotions you remember are what you were feeling before falling asleep. This is very good. You're on the right track. Now... Do you remember a particular glowing? Any colors? Hearing? Sights? Even smells or tastes?"

Neverecho tried to think. There was no glowing. Or colors. Or sights, or sounds, or smells or tastes. But what was that particular feeling... The dizzying numbness... The weight...

"Those were what you were feeling. Numbness and weight... Like a cannonball was attached to you as plunged to the ocean, I am guessing."

All of a sudden, an epiphany came over Neverecho. She could remember something.

 _I remember feeling a strange feeling in my bones. I remember being too startled to scream as... something glowing..._

She fell silent as the final piece of the puzzle came into place.

 _I remember everything. I remember what happened, and why I woke up out of my bed._

 _A couple weeks before, Pyrrhia was acting strange. The sun was melting snow in the Ice Kingdom, tsunamis and storms extended from the Sea Kingdom to the Mud Kingdom. Many MudWings were injured, but few were killed._

 _No one knew what to do. The Queens all said we had to stay calm. Some students in Jade Mountain left. I remember my parents kept acting paranoid, worrying Pyrrhia was finally coming to its end. I was also worried. Why was the weather being so unpredictable? Why were the plants growing improperly? Why were dragons dying of mysterious illnesses?_

 _Then I remember, last night, I fell asleep in my bed, worried. When a soft breeze entered my room, that began stronger and stronger, and the candle near my bed blazed. Then a multicolored gem glowing strangely floated above me. It dazzled colors. Then exploded._

 _Shards flew everywhere as I fell off my bed, and my blanket and pillow fell over, my candle went out, weight pulled me down as my memories faded away._

 _Then I woke up._

The voice fell silent, as if expecting her to say something else, before a minute later she praised, "Thank you for remembering, Neverecho. Remember, I will always be in the back of your brain, but will only come out when you need advice. I recommend you flee the Rainforest Kingdom, as there is nothing left for you here."

Neverecho swivelled her head around. _What do you mean, there is nothing left? Surely the RainWings are still alive?_

"No, Neverecho. They died too. So did your Queen, your King, and the unborn princess."

Neverecho fell silent again, but her heart sunk, for some reason, as hope faded from her like morning fog dissisipating under sunlight.

She slowly walked forward, to make sure. She wanted hope. It was all she needed to survive.

But more tears came to her as she saw it.

The RainWings' huts, being made more sturdily than the NightWings', were mostly uncollapsed, but the smell of rotting fruit and corpses was heavy in the air as it took over that of the sweet water and flowers.

Sloths slowly clambering on vines chirrupped sadly, sadness full in their eyes.

 _The sloths are depressed that their owners died, too._

The Pavilion was untouched, as it was more sturdily made than any of the RainWings' huts, but Glory and Deathbringer were no doubt dead in there.

Neverecho slowly exhaled. _Everyone really is dead. But why? Why me? Why_ us?

The voice simply responded, "I don't know. I wasn't the one that caused this. But you must leave. Not that there is any danger out here, but there is nothing left for you."

Neverecho's dark blue eyes had a flash of realization as her brow furrowed in determination. _I know what I will do next._

"That is?"

 _I will find out what happened to Pyrrhia, what caused it to be here. If there truly is nothing else, I must cope, and most importantly avenge Pyrrhia and find out how everyone died, what happened in particular that caused it to die, and why. And I will search endlessly, all over Pyrrhia, and will spend every breath I breathe on this, until I die myself._


	2. Chapter 1

**M.A.G.I.C - Chapter One - Nothing Left**

Neverecho unfolded her wings, and propelled herself into the air. She flew higher, and higher, till she had reached the emergent of the forest. She could see the crowded, yet lonely trees below her.

 _I remember the first time I had reached the emergent of the forest. I was so proud of myself... And I remember, whenever I did it from that time, there was always an elderly sloth that slept safely tucked between the branches._

Neverecho suddenly realized a bittersweet smile had appeared on her face. A frown tugged at the corners of her face when she realized the shake must've shattered her old bones. _The other sloths seemed mostly healthy and fine. But they were young. That sloth must've been at least twenty years old._

Neverecho sighed. _All good things must come to an end, I suppose._

She soared higher over the trees as warm golden rays carressed her body, the optimistic beams seeming to want to cheer her up.

But Neverecho wasn't sure she would ever feel genuine joy ever again without anyone around.

She let out a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding and found she had reached the edge of the forest. _The Mud Kingdom is just two hours away from here._

"There is nothing left for you in the Mud Kingdom either, Neverecho," whispered the voice.

The spikes on Neverecho's neck slowly arched. _I know there's nothing left. There must be some items I can salvage, though._

The breeze picked up again.

"...Neverecho. Do you really think you'll find what you're looking for?"

 _If I don't find what caused the extinction of dragonkind, I might as well wither to bones. I have to find what caused this. What was that gem, that hovered above my bed and dazzled colors before exploding? Why were there so many shards? Why was there such a shockwave, and why and how did it wipe everyone out with it?_

The voice did not speak.

Neverecho steadily fluttered her wings and flew forward once more. The former green, forest-like landscape faded to brown as the ground became softer the further she flew.

The air was quiet and peaceful. But lonely.

Death hung heavy in the air. The tension was thick enough to snap with a bowstring. But soon...

..The sound of quiet sloshing was heard.

Neverecho froze, hovering in the air, her ears pricking. She swivelled them, as she listened closely.

The sound became louder and louder, as if whatever was causing it was coming closer.

 _Should I hide?!_

"Best to keep quiet," muttered the voice.

A long, brownish figure came stomping forward.

A crocodile was coming. Its amber eyes glowered as it regarded Neverecho with contempt, then charged.

A scream caught in Neverecho's throat before she gurgled it down. It bit Neverecho's tail, as she roared in pain.

A bleeding gash formed, as the crocodile proceeded to gnaw on it as if it were a chew toy. A growl rumbled in its throat as Neverecho wagged her tail rapidly as the crocodile started to loosen its grip, before being thrown onto the soft marsh.

Neverecho turned behind and gallopped forward. The sound of soft growling was still audible, but faded as she went further.

But Neverecho couldn't stop. It was as if a permanent surge of adrenaline rested in her veins. The crocodile wasn't following her, and yet still, she ran through, plowing through the ground like an angry horse, blood pumping through her.

"Neverecho! Stop! I command you to. Stop _right this instant!_ "

The severe tone of her subconscious made her stop, as she breathed heavily, chest heaving in and out, as she tried to breathe.

"What were you thinking? That crocodile wasn't even following you. But that gash is severe... It needs to be treated, but we can't find any doctors or medicaments in this state."

Tears pricked her eyes as she tried to compose herself. That gash was _painful._ If Neverecho had stuck around, who knew what else the crocodile would've done?

"...I told you this mission was useless. Travelling over Pyrrhia to look for the cause of extinction of dragonkind... Look where it's gotten you. You have a bleeding gash that will turn infected if not treated soon, and that infection can turn into something worse, and then..."

The voice did not continue.

 _I have to do this._

Neverecho slowly opened her wings, and flew as fast as she could to the Mud Kingdom. The gash pained her as she flew, but she ignored it.

A couple raindrops fell and rolled of Neverecho's snout, and she groaned as she realized a rainstorm was coming. The sky darkened as the clouds slowly covered the sun. They rumbled overhead, sounding like twenty dragons growling at once.

"If the raindrops get into your wound, the end won't be much far from you, Neverecho," whispered her subconscious. But Neverecho ignored her.

 _I'd rather die trying to find reason, then live wasting away._

A couple raindrops seeped into the wound, and Neverecho growled, slowly closing her eyes, trying to ignore the pain.

She flew faster, and faster. A soft buzzing sound was heard as the world became a blur. She was running out of breath. But she had stamina.

A harsh crackling sound was heard as a jolt of lightning pierced through the ground. She fell over in shock, hitting the ground, mud getting in her wound.

She got up, trying to shake the mud off. She was about to continue flying before realizing her wings were tired and sore. But she tried to fly anyway, tears of pain stinging her eyes.

More time was passing. The scent of death was stronger than ever now. She was getting so close to the Mud Kingdom territory...

When a glittering, raspberry-colored flash appeared, just out of the corner of her eye, before disappearing so quickly Neverecho wondered if she'd just imagined it.

And she could just make out the shape of... a bookbag?

The storm died out after a long time, and it was only then did Neverecho realize she was finally in Mud Kingdom territory.

She looked around: a marshy swamp was just in front of her, the glittering water covered in bright green moss. Giant trees lined the perimeter, simple slivers of the bluing sky barely seen overhead. Several logs had fallen, and a blue heron nervously waded with its long legs, turning to Neverecho, craning its neck forward.

"You're in MudWing territory now, little dragonet," whispered Neverecho's inner voice. "What are you looking for here?"

After a short silence, _If I could find any clues, like a lost possesion, a dragon corpse, or anything, really, I could get one step closer to finding out what happened exactly, and if any dragon in particular did it._

She fluttered her wings and soared forward, over the trees, and saw a castle overhead. _Queen Moorhen's castle?_

The voice sighed. "Yes. She's inevitably dead there, too. Along with her sibs. And her subjects."

Neverecho hovered for a bit, before flying forward. The small huts filling the area were demolished, and a MudWing corpse was to be seen here and there.

When all of a sudden...

..There it was. A dark-brown shaped item was a distance away, and yet it seemed too small to be a dragon. A full-grown one, anyway. But why was there...?

Neverecho flew forward, and as she got closer, she saw the shape turned more and more to looking like a bookbag. With... a gem shard inside?

Neverecho settled onto the ground and picked up the gem shard. It was raspberry colored, and her reflection was heavily distorted on the glass.

"Why is there a gem shard in this bookbag..?" whispered Neverecho, half to herself and half to her subconscious.

"I don't know," said the voice. "Perhaps it's stolen treasure. Maybe a MudWing delinquent raided Moorhen's treasure room," she said.

The NightWing fell silent, before looking deeper into the bookbag and saw...

...A first-aid kit? Did this belong to a doctor?

She slowly fished it out and opened it, seeing so many healing materials. Gauze tape, medicine, pills, disinfectant...

"I imagine you have no nursing experience, so I advise if, you try to treat yourself with this, be careful. You'll probably make your wound worse."

 _I know how to handle myself,_ retorted Neverecho, opening a packet of antiseptic wipes and putting one of them over the gash in her tail. A very mild stinging pierced her, but Neverecho slowly shut her eyelids, taking deep breaths, preparing for the wild stinging that was about to come next.

Dipping her head, the NightWing dug the wipe deeper into the wound, gritting her teeth, trying to force down her high-pitched wails of pain.

Tears stung her eyes, rolling down her face as she abruptly opened her eyes, about to break into sobbing. But she slowly sat upright again, and tried to keep calm, taking deep breaths, waiting for the pain to subside.

Gradually, it did, so she slowly looked down and probed the gash for any inferior substances that had been placed inside. Of course, mud, dirt, and tiny wood shavings laced it, which was what made it so painful even before the treating process.

Slowly picking the substances off with the tissue, Neverecho felt her heart beat faster. She then crumpled the wipe and throwing it as far as she could, the tissue soaring into the distance, before a muted thud was barely picked up by Neverecho's senstive ears.

Grabbing a roll of bandages, Neverecho slowly wrapped the substance over the wound before cutting it off with her teeth. A sigh escaping her lungs, Neverecho shakily placed the roll back in the kit, shutting it closed and shoving it back into the bag.

She stared at it for a while, before finally grunting to herself, "I'll just keep it," slinging the bag over her shoulder. The weight pained her, but she was determined to keep her journey going on.

"Why do you need that bag?" asked the voice in barely a whisper.

 _Well, clearly no dragon is around for miles, and I'm pretty sure the original owner of the bag is dead, so this bag is free for anyone who crosses by. And anyway, who knows if I'll get more injured along the journey? This first-aid kit could save my life. And the bag is perfect for storing salvaged goods._

The voice sighed again after a long time. "You still don't know what you're getting into, though."

 _Maybe not. But I know what I want. And I'm going to look all across the continent if I have to, if it means I can find out the reason._

The weight of the bag was dragging her down, so Neverecho had to walk.

"Where to next?"

 _The Sky Kingdom._

Neverecho marched forward, grunting as her shoulders ached. The first-aid kit did a number on her, and more than anything Neverecho wanted to drop the kit and soar into the sky as fast as she could without ever stopping to think.

But it was better safe than sorry. If she abandoned the kit and left on her journey, she might not be able to store newfound goods anywhere. And besides, it was very likely she'd die somewhere along the adventure; that kit was her only hope.

She decided she would walk all the way up until sunset, and then she would rest for a couple minutes, at most half an hour before going on the move again.

So far, the Diamond Spray Delta was up ahead north. Beyond that were mountaineous forests, mountains, of course, and at the edge of the forests lay the Sky Kingdom.

It would take her, if she flew as fast as she could, a day and four hours to reach Sky territory. But she wasn't flying; she was walking, so it would take three days and two hours for her to reach the Kingdom, perhaps a few minutes more since a heavy item was slowing her down.

She was trying to catch her breath when all of a sudden...

The sound of chirrupping, low grumbling, and nonsensical giberrish filled the air.

Neverecho froze.

She wasn't sure why she was now breaking out in a cold sweat now; it was probably just a small animal, the breeze, or her imagination.

But the high-pitched gibberish continued, when she saw...

...A silhouette, no more than four feet in front of her. It was small; the thing that had cast it was probably only up to her chest. It was on its tall hind legs, and was holding a sharp, toothpick-like object, holding it like a weapon.

She looked up and saw not one, but _three_ scavengers; and one of them had seen her.


	3. Chapter 2

**M.A.G.I.C - Chapter Two - Caught and Bound**

Neverecho froze. Even though scavengers were usually very small and easy to kill, these ones were holding weapons, and seemed like they were hunting for an animal to eat. Even though dragon scales were very tough; those toothpick weapons needed to be about ten times sharper in order to make even a scratch on them; Neverecho wasn't the type of dragon to fight, let alone a scavenger.

At least parrots and tamarins didn't fight back when attacked. Scavengers were capable of building monuments and making weapons. They were no doubt intelligent, and no doubt capable of killing, if they had caused a twenty-year-long war.

And one of them had definitely seen her.

This one had pale skin and large, dark brown eyes. A thicket of wavy brown hair sat atop its head, the only patch of fur to be seen on its body. It was wearing hide all over its body, too, and wore mysterious brown things on its hind feet.

He was looking Neverecho's way and she quickly hid behind a large rock, her heart beating fast. He held his weapon-thing out fiercely, violently chirping something.

It looked around cautiously and slowly walked across the clearing. It peeked between trees and chirped every so often.

It then turned to a taller one; he had tannish skin and straight black fur on its head. It was wearing the same hide as the other one.

The two rapidly spoke to eachother, before it seemed like they had come to an agreement and decided to leave for the next clearing.

Neverecho's heart almost skipped a beat before slowing to a normal pulse, relieved.

A shorter scavenger, with paler skin than the one with brown hair, had freckles scattered across its nose and dark blue eyes. It also had strange, yellowish fur on its head and seemed more childlike than the others. It was probably a juvenile scavenger.

It hadn't moved, and was busy looking around, chirping happily. The other two turned back and called for the short, yellow-haired one to come with them, making a gesture with their paws that Neverecho could only guess meant beckoning.

The short, juvenile scavenger shook its head rapidly, indignantly yelling something out in gibberish, then ran to the rock Neverecho was at.

Neverecho panicked again and instinctively curled up into a ball, like an armadillo, shaking furiously.

But the scavenger had already arrived at the rock, and was now standing in front of Neverecho.

It gasped, and stared at Neverecho for a long time before the older other two called for the younger one.

Neverecho silently prayed this scavenger would leave already with the other two, but this was not the case.

It called out for the other two, making the beckoning gesture and pointed at Neverecho.

 _That's it. This is the end. I'm going to end up tied up on a stick and roasted above a campfire._

"No! You will not," whispered her inner voice. "Those scavengers will not kill you. Not if I can help it."

The other two hurried over and saw Neverecho.

She couldn't bare to look up, or uncurl herself. She couldn't. She continued to pretend she was a giant black-and-blue armadillo wearing a brown bag, wishfully thinking that they would leave.

But this was futile. The tall one with tan skin took out a dart gun and pointed it at Neverecho. The last thing Neverecho thought was, _A sleeping dart? Why don't they kill me?_ before a quiet _zip!_ sound was heard as one of the darts stabbed into Neverecho's side and the world faded to black.

Neverecho finally woke up after what seemed like forever in a dingy cave. The sound of mumbling, ranging from deep to very high-pitched surrounded her ears.

She couldn't believe it.

She was tied to a sort of platform with rope, and hundreds of scavengers beneath her were suspiciously whispering and muttering about her while looking at her.

The cave seemed very spacious; big enough to house around a thousand dragons; and many caverns lined it. Any sound echoed here, so there was no way to be quiet.

Two scavengers climbed onto the platform that Neverecho was on and stood on either side. They held out one front paw, which silenced the crowd of scavengers below.

It took Neverecho a full minute to recognize them as the ones who had caught her in Mud territory; but the short one with the strange yellowish hair wasn't here.

Neverecho had no time to think about what happened to him as the two scavengers spoke in gibberish to the scavengers and every so often pointed to Neverecho.

The crowd had a range of expressions and reactions to snippets of their speech; mainly fear, confusion, and anger. After around forty minutes, the full speech ended and left the scavengers in stirring talk, whispering to eachother about Neverecho.

The two scavengers finally untied her, but before Neverecho could bolt and look for an exit they attached a clip to her wings which tied them together, so Neverecho couldn't use her wings to escape.

They wrapped a rope around her neck and tied it, then used it a sort of leash to lead her to one of the caverns deeper into the caves.

Every other scavenger that crossed their path either gazed at the dragon suspiciously or ran to a cavern in fear. Upon closer inspection Neverecho realized those were their bedrooms, the only things inside found to be rickety beds and a small window.

So, apparently, all that Neverecho could make out was that she was in a scavenger den, but not just any scavenger den; it apparently served as a sort of city that also had homes inside, as the scavengers slept in dormitory-like chambers.

She was finally lead to a dark cavern where little sunlight entered in. The tall one quietly chirped something to the shorter one, and they every-so-often looked at Neverecho suspiciously.

The tall one finally walked towards Neverecho and gazed up at her, squinting his dark eyes, trying to be intimidating.

The young NightWing had no idea how a small thing like him could intimidate her, and awkwardly shuffled her talons.

It sharply chirped something at her. Snapping to attention, she looked around. Was it... giving her an order? How did it expect Neverecho to know what it was saying to her?

Neverecho simply shrugged and the scavenger rolled his eyes, groaning in exhasperation. It pointing towards the ground.

 _What does that mean?_

Nonetheless, Neverecho looked down. Perhaps it was telling her to look for something on the ground?

 _Maybe it's trying to use me as a treasure-finder or something. But I'm supposed to find out how the dragons were suddenly wiped out._

 _It couldn't have been the scavengers. Scavengers went practically extinct after the Scorching. I remember the scrolls saying there had been at least five million scavengers before the Scorching, when they were still at the top of the food chain. After it, though, when the dragons rose up in rebellion, their numbers dwindled. Since scavengers are so rare now, no one knows their exact numbers, but they have been estimated to be about something like two hundred surviving scavengers._

 _Last time I read, there were eight million dragons before the tragedy of last night. There's no way only two hundred scavengers could've possibly killed eight million dragons in one night._

 _So what did cause it? A random shockwave?_

Neverecho was so lost in thought she hadn't realized the scavenger was snapping something at her.

She snapped back to attention and looked at the scavenger. It was angrily glowering at her, and pointed at the floor continuously.

Neverecho raised a brow in confusion before the scavenger sat down. It took her a couple seconds to get it before she sat down herself.

The scavenger nodded and let himself smile before making a loop motion with one of the toes on its paw.

Neverecho moved her head in a circle motion before the scavenger burst out laughing, then rolled over on the floor, before sitting up again, pointing at the floor again.

Neverecho guessed it was trying to tell her she had to roll over, so she did.

The scavenger nodded and took the bag from Neverecho. She had almost forgotten she still had it.

The scavenger flung the heavy object across the room before pointing at it.

 _He wants me to retrieve it._ Neverecho ran towards the bag and slung it over her shoulder again.

The scavenger smiled and chirped, clapping its paws together continuously.

It then lay down on its back, spreading its legs and arms out wide like a starfish and closing its eyes, lolling its tongue out, seemingly dead. It then sat up and pointed at Neverecho.

The dragon mimicked his movements, and they continued doing such tricks for a good two hours, before the one with wavy hair who had been watching finally stood up and walked out of the cavern, chirping something to his darker-haired friend before leaving.

The tall scavenger pointed at the entrance, then scooped up the air and brought it to its mouth.

 _...His friend is going to bring food?_

It continued teaching her tricks in the meantime, and after four hours, the other scavenger finally returned with a rabbit and a sparrow.

The tall one frowned, chirping something to the other one as if it was asking him a question.

He sighed and shook his head, explaining something, before leaving.

The remaining scavenger gave Neverecho the rabbit, and he pointed to the entryway as he left.

 _...He left,_ thought Neverecho, staring down at her prey. _This rabbit will hardly fill me up, but it was still kind of nice of him to give me the bigger share of food._

He came back with his sparrow around five minutes later, the bird corpse now smoky-black as he bit into it.

 _Scavengers are so strange,_ Neverecho thought as she bit into her rabbit. _Why do they always cook their meat? What's wrong with raw meat? Is it because it's softer and less hard to bite into? Scavengers do have flat teeth._

The one with wavy hair came back with a pile of straw and dumped it onto the ground before dustings its paws.

The other one's eyes widened in realization as it turned back to Neverecho and pointed at the bed of straw, then to the entryway.

The two scavengers left as Neverecho bleakly looked out of the caverns. A scavenger with long hair that flowed down its back like a mane with reddish-brown hair, teal eyes and freckles on it nose, walked across the tunnels with a torch. It lit each pot of coal as it passed by, the hallways lighting up with orange light.

 _I guess it's night-time now._ Neverecho walked towards the bed and collapsed onto it. The thin, long straws poked and grated her scales, which was quite uncomfortable, but better than nothing.

She peeked into her bag once more and the pinkish gem flashed in the twilight.

 _I still have a mission to follow, though. Whatever the scavengers want to use me for, it won't happen. I have a purpose. I need to leave._

"...I still think this mission is futile," her inner voice said. "You're risking your life for a dead cause. You should probably stay with these scavengers; I think they'll keep you alive."

"I don't just want to survive," retorted Neverecho. "I want to live. I want to continue on my journey and seek answers. What's the point of living as some sort of dog who performs tricks if I can be the hero of Pyrrhia instead?"

When the voice said nothing, Neverecho sighed and slowly got out of her straw bed and tiptoed over to the entryway.

There wasn't a soul in these corridors. She let out a sigh of relief. Now, she just needed to find the exit...

She trotted across the hallway, looking about her every so often, and arrived at a fork.

There were two other tunnels; one to the left, and one to the right. The left just led to more empty caverns; the right led to inhabited ones.

Going for the obvious choice, she sprinted across the right hall before coming across another scavenger with a long mane of fur running from her head to her shoulders.

She caught her breath and froze against the wall. Luckily, the scavenger walked past her without a hint of suspicion or doubt.

She let out her breath and sprinted across the hall, before arriving at the center of the caves, which served as a sort of town square, with businesses and markets being held.

Most of them had closed, since it was late at night; the moon had almost reached its peak in the sky.

 _I didn't know scavengers were smart enough to have markets. I wonder if all animals are smarter than they seem. And if that's the case, then I'm going to feel bad for every animal I eat._

She fluttered her wings and looked for a window. There were, indeed, seven of them surrounding the walls, but were far too small. If she stuck her arm halfway in, it would get stuck.

 _The windows are too small for me to leave... Where is the exit to this place?_ She looked around, and saw there were many other tunnels leading from the center of the scavenger town.

 _There are still too many of them. How do I know which one to go to?_

"Trust your instincts," whispered her subconscious.

Neverecho furiously scratched the stone ground. _What instincts?! All these tunnels look the same!_

...Well, the tunnels on the right seemed like a good choice. Neverecho went through the third one, and saw a light to the end of the tunnel.

 _There's the exit!_ a relieved smile dawned on her face. She sprinted across the hall, the bright white light shining brighter and brighter the farther she went.

"I'm going to give you one last chance to stay, Neverecho," said her inner voice sharply.

 _Well, I choose NOT TO!_

Neverecho couldn't have felt more happy at that moment. It was like being freed from a trap; she was going to continue her mission.

..A loud shout echoed and reverbrated around the walls. Neverecho skidded to a halt, her claws grating against the floor.

She could just make out the silhouette of a scavenger holding a torch, and was running straight for her.

 **A/N: Bet you thought this story was dead, huh? Well, I've made a solemn promise to not abandon any more stories I publish. I actually have a schedule; I'll continue writing new chapters for this story towards the end of every month. This chapter took two days to write, though, so that's why it came out today. The next chapter will come out on April 21!**


	4. Chapter 3

**Wings of Fire - M.A.G.I.C - Chapter Three - Haunts From the Past**

Neverecho froze. The scavenger was coming straight for her. It was short, and had wavy reddish-brown hair on its head, and hazel eyes. It was angrily glaring at Neverecho and shouting out some sort of battle cry.

Neverecho panicked and knocked the scavenger over onto the ground as she loudly roared, the loud sound echoing across the halls and indeed the entire building.

The rustle of waking scavengers and the indignant chirp of the knocked-over scavenger filled the halls as Neverecho jumped over the exit.

She looked over her shoulder and noticed the building was _right on the edge of a cliff._

Which meant Nevercho was about to fall to her death.

She panicked and roared once more as she looked down; the dizzying death drop was at least 20 feet below until the ground, and she would surely die if she fell.

She was just starting to fall when she began indignantly flapping her wings like a misshapen bird and hovered above the ground for a short moment before flying off.

In that moment she felt the most grateful she'd been for being able to fly as she flew over the pine trees below, moonlight glistening over them.

But the loud shout of scavengers was heard.

She looked behind her and saw many scavengers, mostly male ones, strapped onto weird, hastily-built contraptions that allowed them to fly in the air.

And they were carrying many, many dart guns.

Neverecho didn't want to be brought back to that dingy building, so she flew as fast as she could away from the scavengers.

But maybe because it was late at night, she felt really tired, and before she knew it, she was crashing down into the forest below.

She crashed through the trees, screaming, and collapsed, as the world faded to black.

She awoke to the sound of birds chirping, in the windy dawn. She hastily sat up, and looked around. The scavengers were nowhere to be seen.

She heavily panted. "I guess I... I lost them..." A grateful smile appeared on her face.

The sound of the bubbling river and the wind fluttering on the reeds met her as her smile faded.

 _I really have to be more careful from now on._ She stared down at the wound on her tail that was wrapped with tissue. The substance was very loose and was almost going to fall off.

She pressed it down onto her wound and looked up at the sky. It was filling with dark clouds; it was about to rain.

 _I have to get on the move._ Neverecho flew up and soared the skies as raindrops pelted her, before she finally reached SkyWing territory.

 _Wow._ The scene was practically breathtaking. She looked around her and saw so many buildings, collapsed; the largest one stood high on a mountain. One of the pillars had fallen but overall looked in good shape.

 _Queen Ruby's dead, too._

She sighed once more and walked across the villages. It was like a ghost town. She warily looked around the crumbling houses around her. Even though no dragon was around, it still felt dangerous, for some reason.

She arrived at the castle, and it instantly reminded her of Scarlet; every rubilant scale of hers. And her nasty scar caused by Queen Glory's venom.

She shuddered whenever she thought of it. The first time she saw an illustration of her with her scar in a book about SkyWing history, she got nightmares for almost a week.

She explored the ball room. It faintly smelled of blood and death from Scarlet's reign, but mostly of amber and deer. It left an impression of mystique on her, memories of dancing, smiling dragons without a care in the world that she never had before.

She arrived at the throne room, and out of the corner of her eye, she spotted an amber flash.

 _Another gem shard?_ She ran towards it and picked it up, stars in her eyes.

She stuffed it in her bookbag. _Hmm. These gem shards seem connected to eachother... But how? Are they from the multicolored gem that was glowing above my bed the night of the disaster?_

When all of a sudden... A faint growl was heard.

Neverecho froze. She looked around, breathing heavily. She finally squeaked, "Hello?"

The growl seemed like it was coming from one of the nearby halls. No one replied.

"..Who's there? Is anyone out there, hello?" she tried.

Nothing happened, and even though Neverecho was clearly alone, it seemed as if another presence was standing right behind her.

She heard a hiss and whipped around, whimpering.

It was Queen Scarlet herself.

She couldn't speak. She couldn't move. That illustration of her in that book was permanently etched in her mind, and this looked _exactly_ like her.

A sly smile appeared on Scarlet's face. A laugh bubbled in her throat as she slowly bared each of her glittering fangs.

"Oh, my poor little dragonet. Are you scared of me? There's nothing to be scared of. I'm just Queen Scarlet of the SkyWings... Don't you know me? Please tell me you do. I'll get offended if you don't know me."

Neverecho's mouth moved, but no words came out.

Scarlet laughed a laugh made of pure joy and good humor. "You are _so_ amusing. You remind me of someone I used to know, but he's so pathetic he's not worth mentioning anyway."

She sharply inhaled before a frown manifested itself onto her face. "No, but really, don't you know who I am?" She sighed. "What _do_ they teach young dragonets these days, hmm?"

She looked at Neverecho's bookbag. "And what's this?" She snatched it from her. Neverecho was too paralyed with fear to react.

She peered inside. "...Two gem shards and... a healing kit. Wow. Let me guess; you're trying to revive Pyrrhian life." She rolled her eyes. All I could do was blink. "Look, little one. You can't change fate. Every dragon around you is as good as dead. You should know that. This is a lost cause. Nothing good will come of out of this, and it's time you realize that your insipid fantasies are peurile. I don't mean to crush your dreams or anything but really, are you that stupid?"

She cackled a mean-spirited laugh and manifested into a large, silhouette shadow that swallowed the whole room. "You will never escape me, Neverecho."

She finally screamed and ran, the ringing, echoing sound of Scarlet laughing evilly. But it seemed as if she was running in place; she wasn't getting any farther. Or maybe it was because the room was now totally black.

The spirit of Scarlet was haunting the room.

Neverecho's head finally jerked back as she fell.

She was shivering and whimpering. Perhaps this was a lost cause. Maybe what Scarlet said was true.

"Neverecho, don't believe in anyway that rotten Scarlet says," whispered her inner voice sharply. "She's just trying to get under your..." Whatever she said next, Neverecho couldn't hear it. Her fear was swallowing her thinking range.

"No. No." She violently shivered, tears helplessly spilling out. "... _WHY_?!" she screamed, as she broke out into sobbing.

She finally looked up, and wiped away her tears.

"Oh," said her inner voice in a sympathetic tone. "Oh, Neverecho. I'm so sorry you have to go through this. Scarlet is trying to bring you down, to stop you from trying to get Pyrrhia back. But listen to me. You have to continue on with your mission.

Neverecho sniffled. "..W-What?"

Her subconscious sighed. "Yes, I know I was discouraging you earlier, but that was before I realized the light of this mission. I had no idea you believed in this so bad. I really didn't. And I sincerely hope you an forgive me. I truly am sorry, from the bottom of my heart, that I was oblivious to your feelings. ...You know what? You don't have to forgive me. I don't deserve it. I want you to do what makes you feel happy. Alright? Now continue on. I beg of you. This is no lost cause. We have to keep moving, no matter what life sends our way."

Neverecho slowly got up. _If you had a physical form, I would be hugging you right now._

Her inner voice laughed lightly. "Don't mention it. I only want what's best for you, after all."

A smile struggled through Neverecho's tears. "Oh, and by the way?"

"Yes, Neverecho?"

"Thanks. And I forgive you, so... don't worry about it.

"I'm thankful for your pardon, dear. Now... Onwards."

The floor seemed to tremble, before a huge shockwave threw Neverecho off her feet.


	5. Chapter 4

**Wings of Fire - M.A.G.I.C - Chapter Four - Into the Forest**

Neverecho screamed, and before she knew it, she was catapulted straight through a stained glass window of Ruby.

Her screams of terror turned to screams of pain as the tiny shards of the colored glass stuck into her scales, digging deep in her flesh, causing her to bleed.

Thankfully, she rapidly flapped her paining wings and hovered in the air, searching for a landing spot, before she spied what looked like an abandoned fox den.

She dove towards it, but she was too fast and crashed into the ground, which pierced the shards deeper into her scales.

She stared down at her talons and saw they were covered in muck, and she hopelessly sighed.

 _I might as well start with removing the splinters._

She slowly pulled out the shards one by one. Open wounds flowed with trickling blood, and Neverecho absorbed the dull pain and closed her eyes, and before soon, she was positively covered in mud and blood.

She sweeped the glass splinters to the back of the den with her tail and heard the bubbling and trickling of water.

She looked ahead and saw a small pond with smooth, slippery stones sticking out of the surface. Several warty toads hopped from one stone to another, their throats bulging as they croaked.

Neverecho approached it, and at the moment she did, all the toads on the stones automatically dove into the water, save for one, who looked Neverecho up and down haughtily, and finally dove into the water as if he had no time to negotiate with overgrown lizards such as herself.

Neverecho stared at her reflection on the surface of the clear water. She really was filthy, and bloody, not to mention that, and she sighed once more.

She waded into the water, but the instant she did, the water turned from red, brown, and sour. The toads instantly leaped out of the water and bounded into the forest.

Luckily, all the mud and blood had washed off, and Neverecho looked as good as new. She crawled into her den and pulled the two gems out of her bag.

 _These two gems are both diamond-cut and small fragments of what appears to be something larger. I wonder how these relate to the extinction of dragonkind... Wait a minute._

 _I remember the gem above my bed dazzled colors before exploding into a million pieces. It was multicolored, I remember. So perhaps... These shards were apart of the gem. And I just need to explore Pyrrhia to find the fragments, and perhaps somehow piece them back together. Will... that revive dragonkind?_

 _I've already found the amber-colored one in the throne room of the Sky Kingdom, and the rose-colored one in the Mud Kingdom. I just need to find five more shards from each territory, including the ancient Night Kingdom, and then, maybe then, I can find the answer to this chaos._

 _My next stop will be at the Sand Kingdom, since it's the closest territory from here._

And with that, Neverecho started her journey.

She flew over the forest, and stopped near the ocean, and rested there. She stared into the twilight, and noticed the map of glittering stars decorating the purpling sky.

The two gem shards in her bag were twinkling as the moons above shone like pearls, the largest one full, the second a crescent, the third, barely a flicker of light.

 _Pyrrhia... I'm your only hope._

 **A/N - Hooray for short chapters! I promise I'll make the next one longer, though. And since a few days ago it was my birthday, happy belated birthday to me, I guess. :P**


	6. Chapter 5

**M.A.G.I.C - Chapter Five - The Sands of Time**

Neverecho awoke to the sound of waves splashing against her laying body as salty sea air filled her nostrils.

Stumbling at first, she righted herself up and was surprised to see that she had slept the night here. She had only wanted to rest.

 _I guess I really was that tired from flying all this way._

She softly beat her wings and shot into the air. She flew over the crystal clear waters and turned southwest towards the Sand Kingdom.

The journey was long and tedious, and Neverecho felt so tired at some points that she thought she was going to collapse into the sea below, but she finally spotted land in the horizon, and was already satisfied.

She finally made it and collapsed onto the scorching sand, but immediately shot back up into the air with a yelp when the hot sand scorched her scales.

She flew forward but was already feeling tired, and it was so hot Neverecho thought her scales were going to melt into the sand, and was craving fresh water all the way through.

She unsuccessfully tried to catch a desert lizard or a fennec fox, but then a misshaped desert eagle crashed into her and Neverecho gave it a killing strike to the throat, and ate.

She spotted a cactus and recalled the scrolls stating that water was inside most cacti species, but she crashed into it and pricks were covering her scales.

"What is it with you and getting sharp objects onto your scales?" her subconscious sighed. Neverecho was so surprised she thought it was someone else, and it took her all but five seconds for her to realize it was her subconscious.

 _Oh, it's just you. You've been silent for quite some time._

Neverecho sliced open the cactus and drank its water till every last drop was gone. Neverecho spent the next five minutes gasping for air.

"Yeah, maybe that wasn't a good idea," said her subconscious.

"You know-" said Neverecho between gasps, "that wasn't such bad water- you know - for being in the middle of the- the desert."

Neverecho flew, as much as her stomach and shoulders pained her, as endless desert and endless blue skies greeted her.

Even the horizon seemed to waver as Neverecho approached it, but before long she saw Queen Thorn's Stronghold.

As she approached it, Neverecho couldn't help but feel a mysterious aura of death, certain doom, and rotting corpses, even though it had been refurnished to become Thorn's.

Who was, of course, dead.

Neverecho couldn't help but feel her heart drop when she thought about it. She still hadn't really come to terms with the fact that everyone was dead.

She entered in, and explored the halls that had walls decorated with tapestries, depicting a bright sun and desert lizards and sand dunes.

Before long, she reached a strange room with many, many disturbing mounted and stuffed dragons and animals, bodies contorted and faces twisted with horror.

It was like someone was right behind Neverecho, waiting to pounce on her and rip her stomach open.

Neverecho shuddered at the thought of it.

When all of a sudden...

A twinkling flash of blue caught her eye.

She looked around the room, knowing it was another gem fragment, but saw nothing, and was just about to dismiss it as her imagination, when she saw it again.

There it was; in the clutches of an angry-looking stuffed SandWing, jaws wide open as if it were midroar, and tiny, black eyes seeming to stare right into Neverecho's soul.

She instantly grabbed the sky-blue gem fragment and stuffed it into her bag.

 _..That was decidedly the creepiest thing I had to do._

"Hmm. Perhaps the Ice Kingdom will be less unsettling," huffed the subconscious.

Neverecho nodded and turned, to face the largest dragon she had ever seen in her life.

She had scars and wounds around her body, a fierce look in her bloodshot eyes, muscles rippling through her scales, something twisted in her frown, her claws sharp and long.

This was none other than Burn herself.

Neverecho froze and waited for Burn to kill her in the messiest, most violent way imaginable, remove her viscera, replace it with stuffing, and mount her on a pedestal.

Neverecho bowed her head and started to silently cry, salty tears flowing down her face.

Burn simply shook her head. "You pathetic creature. This must be so traumatic for you."

What was perhaps most disturbing was how patronizing Burn sounded, and Neverecho didn't know what to feel as so many emotions, but mostly anger and fear splashed up inside her.

"You know, the funny thing is, I've never seen you before in my life, most likely because you're not a SandWing, SkyWing, or MudWing."

Neverecho was still crying.

"Come on. Look up. Just give me the gem fragments. I need them for a much better purpose than you could ever use them for."

Neverecho finally tore herself away from the dusty ground and stared at Burn's face.

Burn smiled. "Ahh. Much better. Now, uh; the gem fragments?"

Without waiting for an answer, Burn snatched the bag away from Neverecho and emptied the bag, the gem fragments pouring out like a waterfall.

Neverecho was paralyzed with horror.

Burn scooped up the fragments. "Hmm. For being so little, these appear to have such importance. Maybe due to a correlation with the extinction of the dragon race. I do, do hope you know what you're doing, though ... Perhaps you'd be more use as being a stuffed dragon than a hero, hmm?"

 _I have GOT to get out of there!_ thought Neverecho as soon as her mind stopped blanking out.

"That might prove harder than you think, Neverecho," said the subconscious.

Burn stopped, and looked around. "..Who said that?" she said, but Neverecho thought she heard a hint of nervousness and fear in Burn's normally cutthroat tone.

Burn slowly swivelled her onyx-black eyes back to Neverecho. "No matter, though. Any last words, NightWing?"

Neverecho instantly shot into the air, and was about to roam around the stronghold to look for a window, or to go back out the front door, but fate had other plans.

Burn's claws lunged for Neverecho's stomach, and Neverecho screamed, as Burn was laughing maniacally, as the world went black and Neverecho was in a state of freefall, until all of a sudden, her breathing was cut off, and the world was dark, as a shrill ringing that sounded strangely like white noise filled Neverecho's ears in this midnight abyss of death.

 **A/N: Hello, everyone! I'm back with another chapter! This is a little later, I know, but that's mainly because I had no time to write yesterday because I was at school. It's FINALLY summer break which is great because I'll have more time to write :D I hope this chapter was good enough :,D**


	7. Chapter 6

**Wings of Fire - M.A.G.I.C - Chapter Six - Stolen Dreams**

Finally, Neverecho awoke.

She was instantly greeted with chilly winds and instantly stood up, still slightly disoriented from what had happened earlier.

She looked ahead, and saw nothing more than endless snow, falling snowflakes, and the purpling sky with clouds peppering it.

 _Am I... Am I in the Ice Kingdom?_

"It would appear so, Neverecho," said the subconscious.

Neverecho decided to start her journey through walking.

 _I'm pretty sure the gem shard is in the Palace... But how will I get there with the Great Ice Cliff there?_

The more Neverecho walked, though, the more she felt someone - or some _thing_ \- was watching her.

A feeling of dread was slowly creeping up her spine, when she heard a loud yowl.

She instantly turned around, to see a snow leopard.

A scream caught in her throat as she panicked and shot up into the air, and soared over the winter wasteland below her.

The snow leopard had a wild look in its eye, and its teeth were yellow and broken; Neverecho couldn't help but feel something incredibly off about it, as if it weren't your ordinary snow leopard.

Nevertheless, the NightWing was building up speed, and the world was a blur as she sped to nowhere.

She immediately came to a halt when she saw the Great Ice Cliff; she remembered in the scrolls, they stated that the cliff was enchanted to shoot ice spears at whoever flew over it that wasn't an IceWing.

 _HOW DO I GET PAST THIS CLIFF WITHOUT GETTING IMPALED?!_

She looked down below and saw the snow leopard catching up to her, its bloodshot eyes fixated on her.

She looked over to the Cliff. _I can't hover in the air for all of eternity... Hmm.._

Wait a minute.

The Cliff was enchanted to shoot spears at whoever flew _over_ it.

But what if...?

Neverecho shot towards the ground and crashed into the thick and heavy snow. She was covered by two very thick layers, but sprung out and dug.

"What are you doing?" her subconscious questioned.

 _Acting on a potentially stupid and dangerous idea._

Neverecho looked behind her. The leopard was dangeorusly close to her _._

"Hurry up!" the subsconscious yelped, and Neverecho was digging so fast her arms almost flew out of their sockets from her throwing them back constantly.

 _How do I dig a hole? There are at least a million layers of snow here!_

The leopard was just a few more leaps towards Neverecho, when the tunnel was finally finished.

She leaped in, covered the hole entrance with snow, and continued digging.

"You know, I think this would've been much easier if you had some sort of digging tool," offered the subconscious.

Finally, another hole dug! Neverecho sprang out, and it was breathtaking.

So many ice statues, homes, igloos, palaces, mansions; all made out of frozen water.

It was so magnificent that Neverecho almost forgot to feel cold.

 _Really_ cold. Neverecho had experienced chillyness when it rained, but had never seen snow before.

She started to think.

 _Well, so far the Ice Kingdom has been really cold and I almost died. I thought snow would be fluffy and wonderful, like a cloud. It turns out it actually feels more like freezing ice clumps, which is somewhat disappointing. But watching snowflakes fall is amazing and magical, so I guess that makes up for it. But WHY does it have to be so_ cold _? And also, I thought catching snowflakes with your tongue would be fun, but it's more like having tiny ice particles land on your tongue and dissolve into water. Oh, well. Oh wait a minute. It's freezing._

Seriously, though. It. Was. Extremely cold. More cold than anything Neverecho had experienced before. She thought she'd experienced coldness when it rained in the rainforest. But this was different.

She shot into the air and flew off, partly to warm her up, partly to get to Queen Snowfall's Palace.

 _I'm still surprised at how easy it is for a non-IceWing to get into their territory._

Finally, the Palace, in all its former glory.

It was so tall it scraped the sky and was entirely made of ice. _I wonder how the IceWings can survive in this cold every single day._

She flew through a window and instantly dug her claws into the icy ground below, and she was in such a hurry she actually fell flat on her face.

She got up and rubbed her now sore nose. _I think I broke my nose... and that a couple of my brain cells just died._ She looked around, walking across the mystical Palace, and every sigh she took after every soft gasp of wonder left hot air rising from her mouth.

 _I never knew winter could be so... beautiful. Probably because I've never experienced it before._

When all of a sudden, she sighted a purple sparkle from the corner of her eye, and there it was.

A violet gem shard.

She pulled her claws out of the ice, which left four tiny holes with sparks around them, and which also left the ice to break under her weight, which also left Neverecho falling.

She screamed and in her panic crashed her head into the ice, which cracked it even more, and felt to the ground. The block of ice crashed on top of her in her weightless fall as she was instantly knocked unconscious.

And that's when she heard them.

Dragons kicking up snow. Shrieks of delight. Young hatchlings smiling and playing without a care in the world.

 _What... what's going on?_

"Haha! You can't catch me!"

"I am the Great Ice Dragon, protector and savior of all IceWings! And I'm going to eat you alive, you seventh-circler mongreler! Rawr!"

"Hey, first off, I'm in the FOURTH circle, thank you very much. And second, it's seventh circle dragon mongrel, you idiot- AHH!"

Muffled snow shuffling.

Pretend growls and shrieks and laughs of delight were filling the air. Neverecho tried to scream, but she couldn't. Everything was... black.

"Okay. That's it, game's over!"

"Really? But I didn't even finish eating you alive yet."

"We can do that tomorrow. Or after dinner. Anywho. I... have a secret. A secret that I never told anyone."

"Ooh, a secret? So cool! I promise I'd keep it if you told me."

A scoff. "Well, it's not really a secret. It's more of... a wish."

"Oh, good! 'Cause I hate keeping secrets. I'm the worst at that. I always end up telling everyone. Oops, I said too much..."

A giggle. "Well. It's... kind of embarrassing. That's why I never told anyone in the first place."

"Well, you can tell me! I promise I won't laugh."

A short silence. A deep breath. "Okay. Well... I... wish that one day, there could be this perfect Pyrrhia. You know. One where everyone got along, where we aren't forced to be all tidy and proper, where IceWings are actually allowed to mingle with dragons of different circles than them, or where they even got to mingle with other _tribes._ "

Another silence, but this time longer than the first. Laughter.

"...Hey! You said you wouldn't laugh, you dungsnorter."

Dying laughter. "Sorry. It's just... so funny and weird, because.. well, that's my wish too."

More silence.

A giggle. "That's nice." A sigh. "I just wish we could live to see it."

Even more silence.

"..You know what? Let's go live somewhere off on our own. Where no one can find us. Where we can just be ourselves, and live forever young, live and laugh. We could even.. have children. More dragons.. could come to the island. Our children could have children. They'd have children with the other dragons."

Even more painstaking silence.

"...Okay, the part where we fall in love and all that gross stuff is weird, but other than that... that sounds beautiful, Lemming. But I'm only ten months old, and you're eight months. If we ran away now, our parents would worry to death."

More - you guessed it - silence.

"Hmm. How about we go ice-skating? That should clear up our minds a bit."

"Yeah. I like the sound of that."

Giggling as more snow was kicked into the air as they ran to do their "ice-skating", whatever that was. Maybe that was an IceWing thing.

She heard claws skid across ice, so maybe they were sliding on a frozen-over lake. She remembered that lakes could freeze over when it's really cold in the scrolls.

Then... the horrible, dreadful sound of cracking.

"Polar, this ice is way too thin to skate across. Let's just go home."

More skating, than a final crack, then a yelp, then a splash.

"LEMMING!"

She heard vigorous skating and another splash.

After a while of dread hanging over Neverecho, anxiety sped through her head. _What if those poor hatchlings drown?_

After a great deal of silence, the splashing sound of someone rising from the water, deep gasps for air, coughing. The groan of someone using their strength. "Don't worry, Lemming. Everything's gonna be alright."

Another crack.

Neverecho snapped awake, breathing deeply.

 _...What was that about? Did that actually happen? Was that a dream?_

Whatever just happened, Neverecho was deeply confused. She noticed the block of ice that had landed on her head had slid off. She finally remembered why she was here and flew back up, and saw the purple diamond-cut shard.

She grabbed it, and held it close to her chest. She then placed it into her bag. _Yet another shard found. Next stop - the ancient Night Kingdom._

 **A/N:** **So sorry for making you guys wait! I avtually started this chapter a few weeks ago, but couldn't continue it cuz I had to leave for vacation. Oh, and my Internet's really choppy now for some reason, but here it is! Stay pawesome, everyone. :D**


	8. Chapter 7

**Wings of Fire - M.A.G.I.C - Chapter Seven - Universal Lies**

Neverecho was mad.

Mad at her wings for being so sore while flying to the ancient Night Kingdom island.

Mad at the rain for wearing her down.

And mad at the fact she had to travel across Pyrrhia to find random gem shards that, in the end, she would piece them together to form one big gem, and somehow find out how the dragon race went extinct; well, almost extinct. She was the last living dragon to ever exist.

And no matter how hard she tried, never found she'd ever be able to wrap her mind around it.

She had never really thought of herself as a great hero, and certainly never thought she was the type of hero that saved all of dragonkind.

But she continued to fly. Fly all the way to the ancient Night Kingdom... where her parents used to live.

It took a whole week, but she had finally arrived.

It was so much worse than she thought.

The ground was coal and the sky was black and hazy with smoke, no life to be seen here; not even animals. Rocks decorated the volcano island long with large, intimidating black fortresses that were almost completely demolished. It was nearly impossible to breathe with the ashes and smoke in the air, along with the suffocating heat.

The only splash of color to be seen here were bright gold-and-orange lava rivers that sprawled around the hard coal ground; geysers that sprouted hot steam peppered with ashes were randomly scattered across the dead island.

And, in the middle of all this, was a lone, yet large volcano, and all though it was fairly far away from where Neverecho was standing, she could still hear the faint bubbling of lava in the volcano.

 _How on Pyrrhia could anyone ever live here?_

Neverecho had heard about how terrible the Night Kingdom was, but she never expected it to be this bad. It was, quite literally, a hellhole; she could not possibly imagine how her parents managed to live here.

There were no animals to hunt and no vegetation or fruit to eat; the air was suffocatingly hot and mainly composed of soot, and Neverecho couldn't breathe without coughing or sneezing every five seconds.

She felt a huge wave of sympathy and pity for all the NightWings that had to live in this hellish volcano island.

She wandered around the island, trying her best to avoid the magma and geysers, before she tripped over a stray rock.

She groaned in pain, getting up, looking behind her before realizing that as she tripped, she had moved the rock over and saw a blood-red gem shard had been hiding under it.

 _I honestly can't tell if my clumsiness is a blessing, or a curse.._

She picked it up and put it in her bag.

 _Alright; five down, two more to go._

But before Neverecho could do anything more, she suddenly fell to the ground, and fell into a strange state of sleep.

She was having a dream; but everything was black. She could, however, hear what was going on.

Wind fiercely blowing sand around. A sigh.

"What is it, Dromedary? We have to leave for Headquarters. We don't have any time to waste."

"What do you mean? _I_ have to leave for Headquarters. You have to go to the new Night Kingdom."

"No. I'm not going with them. Remember, I only have to go to HQ to inform Prophecybringer that I'm meeting Coralfish."

"So?! You're a NightWing; you have to go with your family."

"My family are a bunch of pathetic moonlickers who couldn't care less about me. And anyway, all the NightWings are cowards; they're trying to escape some dragon called Darkstalker. I live in the Universal Hub. You _know_ this, Dromedary. Don't be that weak SandWing that followed me there."

Silence.

Dromedary sighed. "I don't know, it's just - I feel sorry for the NightWings, in a way. They have to evacuate this beautiful Kingdom for an island off the coast of the Sky Kingdom, all because some dragon messed up and now everyone has to deal with the consequences."

An annoyed groan. "Stop it, Drome! You shouldn't even care about the NightWings. This is my problem, not yours. Now let's go already!"

"...Fine."

After a short silence, Dromedary chanted something in a strange language. "Fa a maa, fa ni lir-"

"No!" the NightWing interrupted. "Say it the way Coralfish did, in her Cael language."

Dromedary groaned in frustration. "Ugh. Faa a maa, fa ni mir.."

"May the moons and stars take us far away from here!" the NightWing said.

A flashing sound. Then Neverecho was forcibly awaken from her dream.

She gasped for air as if she had just been underwater. _Why do I keep having these dreams whenever I take a gem shard? And why hasn't it been happening before?_

 _Ugh. My head hurts._

Neverecho slowly got up, her vision hazy.

 _Next stop - the Sea Kingdom. Which is a long way from here..._

Neverecho flew even more. Lately, it was basically all she'd ever been doing.

She had to stop to rest more times than she could count, and hunted along the way.

She flew across the "wing" of Pyrrhia, and across the ocean, and once she was well in the Sea Kingdom zone, a storm hit her.

The fierce winds pushed her into the sea over and over again, and the rain stung like fire on her face. There was so much rain she couldn't even see; but eventually, after two days of enduring that storm, she hit land.

She groggily awoke; the storm had passed, and the waves lapped against her.

"...This is what I get for trying to save all of Pyrrhia..."

"Keep in mind nothing worth doing is ever easy," the subconscious reminded, speaking for the first time in weeks.

Neverecho was about to start looking for the sixth gem shard, when she saw a dragon.

Neverecho as so shocked she almost fell over.

She rubbed her eyes, over and over again to make sure she wasn't hallucinating.

But she could still see that SeaWing, whose back was turned from Neverecho - her icy-blue scales, like a glacier rising out of the ocean. Her translucent-pink fins running down her spine, along with same-colored gills and wings.

It took her a few seconds to realize who she was staring at.

"..Anemone?"

 **A/N: PLOT TWIST! I think.. Sorry for the long wait. School started recently which means I have less time to write. I'm working more on poems now, but I'm still working on this series. I'm also working more on the backstory for the disappearance of the dragons' existence, and am planning to make it more detailed. I still don't know if Neverecho will successfully revive dragonkind, because I can't decide if she should or not. Also I don't know if she should die or not, but I plan to keep her alive. The reason why Neverecho survived the shockwave that killed everyone will be revealed towards the end of the story. :D Toodle-oo!**


	9. Chapter 8

**Wings of Fire - M.A.G.I.C - Untold Tales**

The sea lapped at this mystery dragon's talons, staining the beach before covering it again. The dragon seemed to be contemplating something.

The SeaWing turned, and, if such a thing was possible, Neverecho was somehow even _more_ shocked.

Her eyes were pure white.

Her irises were white. Her pupil was white.

She looked like an empty shell - a robot of who she truly was.

"..Anemone... Are you a ghost?" Neverecho whispered.

"Anemone?" the SeaWing asked after a while of silence, in an echoing voice. "Who is this 'Anemone' you speak of? Is she another Cael? Are they still alive?" The SeaWing got to her talons.

"..What's a Cael?" Neverecho asked.

"...Are we that rare?" the SeaWing asked. "I mean, if dragons know of the NightWings' mind reading powers, and their prophetic powers, and some dragons' animus powers, then how don't they know of us?"

"Who are you, then?" Neverecho asked. "What's your name? Are you a Cael?"

"Yes," the SeaWing said. "I am Coralfish."

 _Coralfish... That name sounds familiar, though I can't for the life of me figure out why._ "Alright, Coralfish. Who are Caels? What do they do?"

"We create universes," Coralfish said. "We are a kind of SeaWing that are born once every hundred years; on every Brightest Night."

 _On every Brightest Night... Wait a minute. The last Brightest Night was a few years ago!_ "You... create universes? How?"

"Well," Coralfish said. "We build up all our energy, and concentrate. We think of our new universe - what it will consist of, what purpose it'll serve. We get our energy from the moons and stars, and a new universe is created - it takes alot of our energy, though, and it can take weeks for us to attempt to create another one."

"Oh." Neverecho's eyes suddenly widened as she realized Coralfish might be the answer to why all of dragonkind had went extinct. "Wait a minute. Do you know anything about the disappearance of dragonkind?"

A long silence.

"No," Coralfish finally answered. "Did all of dragonkind die off? How? I imagine some kind of powerful animus-enchanted object, or comet would be able to do such a thing." Coralfish turned away, and sighed. "I wonder how long it has been, since I was trapped in that portal. I spent so long trying to get out - I'm finally free, but as a wandering ghost - no limitations, no rules. No one can kill me. I am free in this form. No one to tell me what to do, no idiotic fools trying to dictate my morals - I'm free." She smiled, and Neverecho couldn't help but feel something weird about it, though she couldn't put her claw on it.

"Do you.. Happen to have a gem shard with you? Diamond-cut, perhaps? So small, you have to hold it in your claws?"

Coralfish slowly turned to face Neverecho. "Oddly specific, but yes." She showed a sea-green diamond-cut gem shard. "Here it is."

Neverecho softly took it from Coralfish, and stared at in marvel.

"It oddly looks like it could belong to my Magically Abysmal with Genuine Idealistic Creativity gem - it represented the Sea Kingdom. I believe its shattered shards have landed here."

Neverecho's midnight-blue gaze shifted upwards to meet Coralfish's plain white gaze. For some reason, whenever she stared into her eyes for a long time, she would hear a buzzing sound in her head that grew louder and louder till it made her head throb. "What's that?"

"What's what?" Neverecho suddenly felt her insides crawl. Coralfish's hollow, robotic voice – her empty, shallow gaze – her stiff body that seemed locked together… Coralfish's voice barely had a hint of confusion in it.

"The Magically Abysmal gem. Do you know where the other shards are?"

Coralfish seemed to have a look of confusion before shaking her head. "Sorry, I don't. The gem was initially broken in the universe I created – the Sanctuary for Dragonets with Lost Souls Who Come From Broken Homes. You must know about it. Echo broke it – she'll pay for that." Coralfish turned her head, a bitter look on her face.

Neverecho raised an eyebrow. "What Sanctuary? Who's Echo?"

Coralfish turned towards Neverecho. "Why do you wish to know all this, anyway? Are you a spy? Am I wanted for my supposed crimes because I learned to open my mind to more than fantasies of altruism?! Everyone knows the best way to live is by yourself because in the end, even your best friend will betray you!" She spat out her words as if they were poison on her tongue, her eyes seeming to swell with anger.

Neverecho felt her heart beat a little faster. "Um, no." She then sighed, hanging her head low. "All of dragonkind has perished and I need to collect all the gem shards to create the gem, and see if that will revive them back."

"Well, you'll never get them!" Coralfish dramatically opened her wings. "Dragons don't even deserve to exist anymore. That universe where the gem was broken is destroyed. You'll never find the shards!" She then dove into the ocean, never rising to the surface.

Neverecho was speechless. What had just happened? Had Coralfish killed all of dragonkind?

Neverecho sighed. She stuffed the tiny shard into her bag.

Her next stop would be at the RainWing kingdom.

 **A/N: IT LIVES! You thought this story was dead, huh? Well, guess what! Winter break kinda activates my master procrastination skills 'cause I started writing this chapter back in September.**


	10. Chapter 9

**M.A.G.I.C - Chapter Nine - Something Old, Something New**

Neverecho flew off. A thing she noticed now was that working her wings so much recently from flying all over Pyrrhia had helped her wing muscles, so she got tired less easily - of course, her wings weren't as powerful as a SkyWing's, but her wings feeling sore was still becoming more uncommon.

She decided to soar higher up above, observing the sand from underneath, and performed loops in the sky, starting to enjoy herself.

In flight, she checked her bag - she saw the raspberry-colored gem shard from the Mud Kingdom, the amber gem from the Sky Kingdom, the purple gem shard from the Ice Kingdom, the sky-blue gem shard from the Sand Kingdom, the red gem shard from the island in which the NightWings used to live in, and a sea-green gem shard from the Sea Kingdom.

Neverecho smiled to herself - she was proud that she had managed to find nearly all the tiny, barely noticeable gem shards that were shattered across Pyrrhia with barely any help, if you don't count her subconscious, and she was also glad that she only needed one more gem shard, and she would be ready to save Pyrrhia.

She flew over the sea and the Mud Kingdom, before finally arriving at her former home - the Rainforest Kingdom.

It was at this point that Neverecho had finally realized she had no home now - she was a nomad, wandering Pyrrhia during her journey. Now that all of dragonkind was extinct except her, and the fact that she had been literally flying to every Kingdom in Pyrrhia, it felt weird for her to admit this was her home.

She smiled as she had reached the rainforest - the crowding green trees, the rainforest animals, the familiar smells - she was instantly hit with memories of her dipping and swirling around the trees, as if she were a seal swimming between waves - while it served as a warm, nostalgic feeling, it also served as a bittersweet feeling, twisted, even, in a way, now that she remembered everyone she had ever knew was dead.

She remembered the sound of the trickling river and the howler monkeys, the surrounding birds of paradise with their mating calls - she was so stricken with happiness that she nearly forgot why she came here in the first place.

"Remember why you came here, my dear Neverecho - to find the last remaining gem shard," whispered her subconscious.

"Oh, right," Neverecho said aloud, before searching.

She sighted the royal treehouse in which Queen Glory and King Deathbringer used to live in. At first, she was nervous about probably seeing their dead bodies, but knew the fate of Pyrrhia rested in her talons, and her talons alone - if seeing the rotting bodies of her former rulers was what it took, then she would do it.

She flew inside, feeling a bit weird about entering the place where her Queen used to live in, and decided to search.

She searched everywhere, purposely avoiding Glory and Deathbringer's bedroom, but eventually decided to enter. She gulped as she slowly cracked open the door, wincing at the loud creaking sound.

Sure enough, Glory and Deathbringer's bodies were on the floor, since the shockwave which had killed all of dragonkind had threw them onto the floor.

She looked under one Glory's pillow, and saw a peach-pink gem shard underneath.

A grin found its way on Neverecho's face as she stuffed it into her bookbag.

"I did it!" she said. "I never thought I'd succeed in my mission.. but I did. I thank you, subconscious, for accompanying me throughout this journey."

"Oh, it was really nothing," she said. "Now.. you can go ahead and piece those shards together."

Neverecho took the gem shards out and started piecing them together, before she realized there was one missing gem shard. She let out a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding.

"Hmm.. that's odd," the subconscious mused. "You've visited every place where dragons have inhabited in Pyrrhia."

"I have," Neverecho said. "Weird... I visited the Mud Kingdom, then the Sky Kingdom, then the Sand Kingdom, then the Ice Kingdom, then the old Night island, then the Sea Kingdom, and now the Rainforest Kingdom.. I haven't missed a single Kingdom."

Suddenly, a strange wave of fatigue sweeped over her before another loud voice echoed in her head.

"CORALFISH!"

"Huh?" Neverecho blinked several times. What had just happened?

"CORALFISH! I know something's wrong with you!"

Suddenly, a dark blue flash of light appeared in the sky - almost like a star.

Neverecho flew up to touch the star and the bitter voice of Coralfish responded.

"There is NOTHING wrong with me! These fools expect me to coddle them like their mother, but they don't know how the world works!"

Another dark blue spot of light appeared in front of her.

"Coralfish, you can't do this! You're going to kill them!"

Like will-o'-the-wisps, those dark blue spots kept appearing, and Neverecho kept chasing after them.

A scream and a thud sounded.

"CORALFISH! WHAT DID YOU JUST DO?!"

"That little ice dragon was asking for it."

Suddenly, a different voice sounded.. was it the female IceWing who almost drowned in that dream she had when she had collected one of the shards? "How DARE you!" Suddenly, a sickening slashing sound was heard, and a wailing shriek was heard.

"I can't see! _I CAN'T SEE!_ "

"Coralfish, I'm begging you! Stop this! You're going to kill them!"

"Echo, you know _nothing,_ " Coralfish hissed. "Nothing about the real world. Nothing about how life works. Nothing."

"This isn't the Coralfish I know. The real Coralfish was altruistic. The real Coralfish was the kindest dragon I've ever met. The real Coralfish would never try to kill poor, innocent dragonets who have done nothing wrong!"

"I guess you haven't known me that long, then!" Another slashing sound.

"Stop this!" The voice of Echo started to crack, as if she was going to cry. "Coralfish, you were my one and only best friend! You must stop this! Please! For me, at least!"

Coralfish's voice darkened. "You're a fool."

A thud and a sliding sound was heard, along with a grunt.

"Wait, Echo, what are you doing? NO!" A twinge of fear made its way onto Coralfish's voice. Suddenly, the sound of what sounded like glass shattering echoed and reverbrated against Neverecho's mind.

Suddenly, the sound of screaming erupted from the other dragons, before being cut off, one by one. Neverecho could suddenly see flashing images of young dragonets being sucked into a portal, before the world blackened. A ghostly silence.

Suddenly, still images of the worried dragonets. Polar, the male IceWing, had his left arm torn off. Lemming, the female, was blinded in one eye. Dromedary looked worried.

Suddenly, Neverecho felt herself land on some sort of hard surface. She looked up, and was surprised at what she saw.

A school, a library, a museum, a palace..

Pillars left in ruins, ferns peeking out from uprooted trees, a marble dragon head that seemed to have been broken from a statue..

Could this be the Lost City of Night?

 **A/N: -crawls out from coffin- I'M STILL ALIVE!**


	11. Chapter 10

**Wings of Fire - M.A.G.I.C - Chapter Ten - The Last Piece of the Puzzle**

Neverecho's jaw fell open. Her eyes were practically bulging out of their sockets. She couldn't believe she was standing right here, where her ancestors used to live.

"..I can't believe it," she said softly, when she finally managed to speak. "I just can't believe it."

"Neither can I," her subconscious whispered back. "It's like being inside the pages of a history scroll."

Neverecho had heard of the Lost City of Night before in some scrolls she used to read, and it sounded fantastical to her - she still couldn't believe she was standing right here.

"Well, we can't just stand here all day gawking at the scenery, now can we?" her subconscious said, startling Neverecho.

"You're right," the young NightWing replied, swallowing the lump in her throat. "We have to find the last gem piece."

And so Neverecho set off. She walked around the old city, sometimes pausing to admire the ruins of the former buildings here. Two thousand years ago, this was where the NightWings used to live... now, it was a ghost town.

She walked around, sometimes pausing to study the scenery, and after about five minutes of strolling around, she had seemed to reach the center of the city - it was a plaza that had a palace with many intimidating towers and a school to the north, and a museum and a library to the south - the four buildings formed a diamond shape in the plaza.

Of all these places, Neverecho decided to check the palace first, at the Royal Tower. When she entered, she noticed the hallways were made of black marble, with mirrors every three steps - it was regal, yet dark and austere - perfect for a NightWing's palace.

It eventually felt eery for Neverecho to walk through these dark, almost dreary hallways. And with all the mirrors... it almost felt like someone was watching her.

She kept twisting around several corridors, before finally reaching the throne room - it had a slick marble floor with diamond patterns and at the center, there was a dais that held a throne - this was the throne room, no doubt.

Neverecho walked up to the dais, her claws clicking against the floor and almost echoing throughout the room. She somehow felt a strong aura of anxiety around the throne, but didn't know why - it was probably due to how imposing the throne looked, and it felt wrong to just saunter up to it considering hundreds of Queens used to sit there.

She felt her heart beat louder in her ears the closer she got to it, and when she had finally arrived in front of it, she stared at the throne with wide eyes.

 _This throne used to belong to so many queens, so many years ago... and now..._

"It's just a chair, you know," the subconscious said softly. "It's not gonna bite your or something."

Neverecho was about to reply when she noticed something twinkle at the corner of her eye, behind the throne. She looked behind it, and there it was. The last gem shard, twinkling orange in the sunset.

She let out a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding.

Neverecho picked it up, her arm trembling and her talons sweating, holding the ever-so-tiny gem shard between her claws. She turned it to face different angles, admiring its sheen.

This was it. Her journey was over. In a few seconds, she would have restored Pyrrhia. In a few seconds, everyone she knew would come back. In a few seconds, everything would change.

Neverecho felt hot, salty tears of joy sting the back of her eyes, grinning gratefully.

"I'm proud of you, Neverecho. I've accompanied you throughout this journey, and now you're a hero. You've flown throughout all of Pyrrhia to find the gem shards, despite how hard it was, and now, you're going to bring everyone back. Tales that wouldn't have been finished are now going to be continued, thanks to you. Dragons who wouldn't have led kingdoms and dragons who wouldn't go on journeys of a lifetime can now do so, thanks to you. Dragons are going to resume leading their own unique tales, are going to start families of their own, find love and friendship... all thanks to you," her subconscious said.

Neverecho let her tears flow down her cheeks, bowing her head and smiling all the while.

After about five minutes of crying, she wiped her tears away and gathered up all the gem shards from her bookbag, and slowly started putting them together. Her entire body trembled and shaked as she took the last one from the Lost City of Night and placed it in the missing spot.

The gem started glowing brightly in the twilight, and Neverecho was in awe of its beauty. It continued glowing brighter and brighter until it hurt her eyes to look. Suddenly, she lost consciousness, dropping the gem in her bag, and fell to the ground.

When Neverecho opened her eyes, she was on a beach, staring at her talons - somehow, she was taller than before and her scales were tinted purple and she had a purple underbelly - she was in the body of someone else.

Neverecho wanted to scream, but she couldn't - she wasn't controlling her movements. She could only control her thoughts. Two moons were full tonight, and the the third was only half-full. The wind softly blew against the dragon she was in the body of.

After a while, the dragon sighed and looked up towards the sea. The waters were calm and all seemed at rest.

"I just don't understand," the dragon finally said. It sounded similar to the dragon named Echo in those strange dreams Neverecho had before. "Why is it so important to my parents that I have to have powers like everyone else? It's always the same story. 'Echo, you would've been better off if you were hatched under at least one full moon. Your sister can read minds and your brother can tell the future. You can't do anything other than swim at the beach.' Who cares that I can't do that stuff?" She suddenly clawed against the sand aggressively.

"It's not my fault that I wasn't born under a full moon! Mind-reading and seeing the future sounds creepy anyway. Who would actually _want_ powers? What with Queen Vigilance's creepy obsession with her seers... and I wouldn't want dragons poking around in my head!"

She tightly squeezed her eyes shut, before sighing again and bowing her head, eyes still closed. She curled her tail in around her.

Two minutes later, Echo could hear a wave coming in. It splashed against the shore, lapping at her talons. She could suddenly hear heavy gasps and looked up.

A pale blue SeaWing with translucent pink fins along her spine had appeared on the beach, and she looked out of breath. She looked up at Echo and softly gasped, sitting up. Her eyes were crystal-blue, like pure pools of water.

Echo's jaw fell open. How did this SeaWing get here, on NightWing territory? "I-I'm sorry, who are you?" she asked when she finally managed to speak.

"I was going to ask the same question to you," she said. Her voice was soft and light. Listening to her voice was a bit like floating on clouds.

"Why are you here, on NightWing territory?" Echo asked.

"I was busy creating a universe, and a wave came in and I got here," she said, as if creating universes was something dragons normally did.

"Ooookay then," Echo said after staring at this mystery dragon in disbelief for a few moments. "I'm Echo. What's your name?"

"Echo? That's a beautiful name," the SeaWing said, smiling. "I'm Coralfish, a Cael."

Suddenly, Neverecho was forcibly awoken from her dream - in a rainforest.

She scrambled to her talons. The rainforest? But how? Maybe she was back at home - but this clearly wasn't the NightWing village. She was in the middle of the forest.

She ran through the trees and pushed through them, before finally arriving at a clearing. And there, she saw a RainWing.

 **A/N: We're almost at the last chapter! Bear with me, guys!**


	12. Chapter 11

**Wings of Fire - M.A.G.I.C - Chapter Eleven - Truth Revealed**

Neverecho stopped cold. The RainWing's eyes were round with shock - his scales were acid-green with swirls of yellow and orangey-purple. They both were speechless.

"Who are you?" Neverecho suddenly blurted out, when she finally managed to speak.

The RainWing blinked several times as though trying to recompose himself. "My name is Panther. Who are you?"

Neverecho shook herself. "I'm Neverecho. Can you please give me directions to the NightWing village?"

More orangey-purple swallowed the RainWing's scales. "Excuse me?"

"The NightWing village," Neverecho repeated. "You know, where the NightWings live now."

"The NightWings don't live in a village," he said, staring at his talons. "They live in a kingdom. You're a NightWing yourself - you must know that."

 _Is this dragon toying with me?_ Neverecho wondered. But she tried to keep her patience. "The NightWings don't live on their island anymore. They live in the rainforest now."

A surprised yellow sweeped through his scales with orangey-purple polka dots. "The NightWings don't live on an island. Have you been eating poison frogs?"

"Well, they have for the past year," Neverecho said. Now she was starting to lose patience. "If you can't tell me where the NightWing village is, then at least tell me where the RainWing village is."

"The RainWings live in the Rainforest Kingdom," Panther said. "And I'm afraid this is not the Rainforest Kingdom."

Neverecho was deeply confused now. The only place on Pyrrhia that had a rainforest environment was the Rainforest Kingdom. "Well, where is this, then?"

After a short pause, the RainWing said, "This is the island that I have created. We are currently off the coast of the Night Kingdom ruled by Queen Vigilance, not the one on the island, or whatever. How did you get here?"

"I honestly don't know," Neverecho replied. "I woke up here. But, did you just say you _created_ this island?"

"Yes," Panther said, nodding. "I'm an animus." He suddenly sighed. "It was the least I could do, after how they treated me."

It took a few moments for this to sink in. A RainWing animus? How was that even possible?

"Who is 'they'?" Neverecho asked.

"My fellow RainWings," Panther explained. "I was considered a freak of nature, with my powers. They.. exiled me. So I made this island."

Neverecho was properly taken aback. Neverecho knew animus dragons were powerful - but powerful enough to create a whole island? "Well, I'm sorry to hear that, Panther, but do you know that all of dragonkind went extinct?"

To Neverecho's surprise, Panther did not seem shocked at all. "Oh, I know that. I was the one who caused it."

"What?" Neverecho said, the spines on her back bristling.

"I created the M.A.G.I.C gem," he explained. "It stands for, 'Magically Abysmal with Genuine Idealistic Creativity', which is what Pyrrhia really is. I enchanted it so Pyrrhia's hypothetical 'heart' would be inside it. If were to ever break, it would kill all of dragonkind but me. I found the shards and put them together and enchanted it. But how are you still alive, little one?"

"I.. I honestly don't know," Neverecho confessed. "I guess I'm immune to animus magic, somehow."

"That would be the most likely explanation," Panther said. "But I wonder - _how_ are you immune to animus magic?"

"I don't know," Neverecho replied, not sure how to feel about that. _Immune to animus magic... really? Wasn't there possibly another force that caused me to be one of the two surviving dragons?_ she thought.

"..Well, I broke it out of spite for the RainWings. As if I asked to hatch with animus powers.." Red and orange started bubbling up in his scales, with flecks of black.

"I found the shards, though," Neverecho said, reaching into her bag and fishing out all eight shards."They were scattered all across Pyrrhia. It took me a while to find them all.. but I did."

Panther snorted in amusement. "So, are you going to try to piece the shards together? As if that'll actually revive dragonkind?"

"Yes, I will," Neverecho said, her brow furrowing. "Because there are so many dragons out there with stories that would be otherwise untold if I didn't piece them together."

"Go ahead and try," Panther spat. "See if that'll actually do anything. I can't wait to see the look on your face when you realize that this was all a lost cause."

Ignoring his words, Neverecho slowly pieced the shards together. When it had formed one single gem, it started glowing and slowly floated upwards, hovering just above Neverecho's palm. A portal suddenly opened in front of her, a black void. She stepped back in fright.

"Well, I didn't expect that," Panther said, light blue easing through his scales.

Neverecho swallowed the lump in her throat and slowly stepped towards the portal - and jumped in.

Everything was suddenly pitch-black - Neverecho was surrounded by vacuum, void and oblivion. She couldn't feel her heart beating. She couldn't move. She couldn't think. She could hardly breathe.

And yet still, she could just make out the faint image of a brutally injured SandWing.

 **A/N: THE LAST CHAPTER! Yup, this is the end of the story. I had always originally planned for a suspenseful ending. Thank you for supporting me through this journey, guys!**


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